US to hold 13-GW Gulf of Maine wind lease sale on Oct 29

The US Department of the Interior announced on Monday it will hold an offshore wind energy lease sale for eight areas in the Gulf of Maine on October 29.

The areas off the coasts of Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine have the potential to deliver 13 GW of offshore wind energy, the department said. The area included in the Final Sale Notice (FSN) is some 120,000 acres smaller than what the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) outlined in its Proposed Sale Notice issued earlier this year. BOEM focused on avoiding offshore fishing grounds, sensitive habitats and existing and future vessel transit routes, while still keeping enough acreage to support the region’s offshore wind energy ambitions, says the announcement.

BOEM has just recently completed its environmental review of the wind energy area in the Gulf of Maine. The FSN announcement also follows the US’ first floating offshore wind energy research lease in Maine last month.

The FSN, to be published in the Federal Register on September 17, includes several lease stipulations aimed at stimulating the development of a domestic US supply chain for floating wind and advancing flexibility in transmission planning, among other objectives.

The department pointed out that since the start of the Biden-Harris administration, it has held five offshore wind lease sales and approved 10 commercial-scale offshore wind projects.

“The upcoming Gulf of Maine offshore wind energy auction reflects our all-of-government approach for reaching the Biden-Harris Administration’s energy goals while combatting the climate crisis,” stated BOEM director Elizabeth Klein.

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